Imitation tile.



No. 735,344. PATENTED AUG. 4,1903.

w. N. CORNELL.

IMITATION TILE.

APPLICATION FILED snrr. 22, 1902.

KO MODEL.

m9 WWW. M, flaw/120% V w w m UNITED STATES Patented August 4, 1903.

WILLIAM N. CORNELL, OF STARLAKE, NEW YORK.

IMITATION TILE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 735,344, dated August 4, 1903. Application filed September 22, 1902. Serial No. 124,267. (No specimens.)

To 01 136 whom it may concern:

Be it knownthat I, WILLIAM N. CORNELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Starlake, county of St. Lawrence, State of New York,l1ave invented certain new and useshall be more durable, in that it is flexible inin place on a wall.

stead of brittle, lighter in weight, and at the same time less costly to manufacture.

To these ends it consists of the novel features and combinations of parts hereinafter described, and more particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 shows the tiling Fig. 2 is a view of the back, showing the fasteners for securing it in place. Fig. 3 is a section on line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. i is a detail view showing the manner of roughening the grooves to hold cement.

My tile is preferably made of wood-pulp board, for the reason that this material possesses all the qualities above enumeratedas desirable. It can also be easily made fire and water proof, thereby increasing the value and utility of the product.

The tile consists, preferably, of two layers or sheets of pulp board 1 2, each about onefourth of an inch thick, firmly cemented together. The inner sheet 2 carries a number of fastening devices 3, of any suitable kind, by which the finished article may be secured in place, as by embedding the fasteners in the soft plaster of a wall. A convenient device for this purpose consists of a staple with its points bent outward, as shown in Figs. 2

and 3. The upper layer 1 conceals the fasteners and is an effectual means of keeping the same securely in position in the lower layer.

-. Instead ofmaking the tile in small pieces,

' as is the usual way, I prefer tomake the same in large sheets and impress them with a suitable die carrying a pattern in relief, so that the sheet is indented or grooved to give the product the appearance of having been built up of a number of units. This method is shown clearly in Figs. 1 and 4.. The grooves, however, need not be made by stamping or pressing the board, but may be out out or otherwise formed. The grooved side of the sheet is now enameled or glazed, and to make the illusion more complete the grooves are filled with plaster or cement of a suitable kind. I have found, however, that the plaster does not adhere permanently to the smooth surface of the enamel,and I therefore roughen or otherwise treat the glaze in the indentations to enable the filling to take a firmer hold. A convenient way of effecting this result is to perforate the enamel down into the underlying pulp board, so that the cement will penetrate the enamel and adhere also to the board. This method is clearly shown in Fig. l, in which i is a groove perforated to receive a filling, such as 5.

1 Having now fully described my invention, what I claim is- 1. As a new article of manufacture, an imitation tile consisting of grooved, enameled pulp board, and a filling of plaster-like material in the grooves, the enamel in the grooves being perforated, whereby the plaster-like material penetrates the enamel and adheres to the underlying pulp board, as set forth.

2. As a new article of manufacture, an imitation tile consisting of a plurality of pulp boards firmly cemented together, and staples having outwardly-bent points secured in one of said boards and adapted to engage a wall to hold the tile in position, as and for the purposes set forth.

3. As a new article of manufacture, an imitation tile consisting of a plurality of pulp boards, firmly connected together, one face of the tile having a grooved pattern and a filling of plaster -like material in the grooves, and the opposite face having fastening devices protruding therefrom to secure the tile in place, as and for the purposes set forth.

WILLIAM N. CORNELL.

WVitnesses:

S. S. DUNHAM, M. LAWSON DYER. 

